Great Expectations
by SayianWizard
Summary: Because who needs a quirk when you have a 12th level intellect? Izuku Midoriya sets out to prove that a powerful quirk is nothing compared to a vastly intelligent mind.


**I do not own the property of Boku no Hero Academia/My Hero Academia. This is simply a fan based project.**

Season 1: Episode 1 – Wear It Like Armor

"So? What'd you get?"

A young Izuku Midoriya who was coloring was startled by that question causing him to draw a line through what was once a decent drawing of All Might. Though he should have expected this from Kacchan.

It had been a week since he'd been to their nursery. He had been on a vacation with his mother to see his father in celebration for his fourth birthday. Neither he nor his mother had ever been to America before, or anywhere outside of Japan for that matter but they had enjoyed being in Houston, Texas where there seemed to be no limit of things to do.

Of course, the excitement had been somewhat dulled by the fact his quirk never showed up the entire trip. Not on his birthday or any of the days afterward. His parents had assured him there was nothing to worry about so early. Quirks could show up in people as late as eight or even into their teen years (though the latter was extremely rare).

Their assurances hadn't done much to ease his nerves considering before the trip he was the only one in his nursery that had yet to get his quirk. Izuku felt their effect even less in the face of best friend's judgement.

The green haired four year old turned to face Bakugo Katsuki, the first kid in their nursery to get a quirk and the only one with one strong enough to possibly become a hero. Izuku had hoped, quite futilely that Kacchan wouldn't ask about his quirk, or lack thereof.

Katsuki was looking at him with an impatient look on his face. "Well?"

"Nothing," he gritted out between clenched teeth.

Katsuki blinked, taken aback by his answer. "Nothing?" he echoed in confusion.

"Nothing."

There was silence between the two as they observed one another. Around them the other children in the nursery were laughing and playing while to their caregivers observed, blissfully unaware of the tension building between two friends. One wondering what it meant that his best friend had no quirk, while the other hoped for a favorable reaction from the former.

Katsuki, unsurprisingly, was the first to break the silence. "So…you're quirkless?"

Izuku flinched at the word. Even though hadn't said the word with any maliciousness or disdain, there was no dismissing how easily it translated to 'useless.'

"No, no!" This was exactly the type of reaction he was trying to avoid. "My mom says not everyone gets their quirk by the time they turn four. Sometimes it can take a year or more." Which was true. Izuku had looked up that fact for himself. Not that he didn't trust his mother's word….it's just he had to be sure.

Most quirks appeared before or shortly after a person's fourth birthday. In rare cases quirks manifested at birth or later in adolescence. Even rarer were quirks that didn't make themselves known until well into adulthood. The only way to rule out that a person wouldn't get a quirk was through thorough genetic testing, while not 100% accurate (98.999%) it was as close as one could get.

"Hmph. Sounds like a waste of time. Everyone else has their quirks," Katsuki said with narrowed eyes as he looked at Izuku with growing disgust.

Izuku felt like someone was pouring ice through his veins. "No, it's true. We went to the doctor and he said something about…a toe joint? That I had an extra one and most people with quirks don't? But he said that was just an easy way to know if you would get a quirk. He said he would run some tests to be sure. The results won't be in for a couple of weeks. I'll know for sure then."

His friend blond haired friend scoffed. "Whatever. Figures you'd be a late bloomer." Katsuki's expression had shifted from one of disgust to mild annoyance.

Realizing that was the best he would get from his friend Izuku took a deep breath, releasing the tension that had built up in the past few minutes. He didn't realize how just how tense he'd been until his shoulders slumped and his fists unclenched leaving behind a dull ache.

As Kaachan moved towards one the play areas with Izuku moving to follow, the blonde turned his head back to address the greenette.

"You know, this just proves what I said before. There's no way your quirk will be as good as mine. After all, I get my quirk months before my birthday."

Izuku bit his lip to keep from rolling his eyes. He'd heard the tale, how many times was it now? Twenty? Thirty? Almost a hundred times? It was getting old. As much as he admired Katsuki's easy confidence, fearlessness and overall energy, it didn't change the fact he had gotten lucky.

Both his parents had mundane quirks that happened to merge in him to become a unique and powerful one. He could have just easily acquired either one of their quirks with no variant. Then what would he have to brag about? How many of their classmates would be praising him or following him around then? No one, that's who. It was all shallow praise to begin with.

Honestly Izuku himself was the one with the potential for a powerful quirk with his father's ability to breathe fire and his mother's telekinesis, the possibilities were endless. Pyrokinesis, fire attraction, or a stronger version of telekinesis or fire breath. The thought of receiving either of those abilities made him excited.

Once he got his quirk, no matter what it was, he would learn everything he needed to in order to become a great hero.

* * *

 _To the parent(s)/guardian(s) of Midoriya, Izuku, you child's DNA has been submitted for genetic testing for quirk markers to S.T.A.R. Labs. Each test was performed thrice in order to insure no chance of error._

 _We regret to inform you that almost every test, except testing for recessive genes, has come back negative. There is no chance…_

Inko Midoriya covered her hand with her mouth to hold back the sob that threatened to burst from her lips as she held the letter she and her son had been waiting for, for weeks now. She'd heard the mail slip through the slot in their door and immediately gone to collect it. The letter had been the first one on the pile and she had wasted no time opening it.

' _So this was it. The final verdict.'_

Inko swallowed hard as she tried to process this unwelcome news. Of course, she had long accepted it was a possibility especially Izuku's last doctor's visit. But she had hoped… She brushed away the tears falling down her checks.

Not that her hopes mattered. Only Izuku's did and…god, what was she going to tell her son? His greatest wish, no desire, was to be a hero. Unfortunately, the reality was in Japan there were no quirkless, in fact, such an occurrence happening was severely discouraged. Both by prejudice and a few unfortunate incidents involving quirkless individuals who'd tried.

Still…

How could she crush his dreams at such a young age? Four was too young to open her son's eyes to the unfairness of the world.

Though she should have expected something like this would happen. There was no such thing as perfection yet Izuku had been near perfect from birth. Born as healthy as a newborn could be and already full of joy.

His development over the years had been nothing short of prodigious. It seemed in no time at all he learned to sit up, take his first steps and walk without assistance. He had learned to talk with ease and by the time he was old enough to attend the nursery at three he could speak in complete sentences, an uncommon occurrence for his age.

Even his caretakers at the nursery praised his intelligence and complimented her teaching methods. Inko simply accepted the compliments with grace in order to avoid further probing that a denial would incur, as she knew her son's talent for picking up knowledge with ease had little to do with her.

With how brilliant her son was turning out to be, Inko had assumed he would have wonderful quirk to go along with his mind. Yet, it seemed that wasn't to be. Perhaps this was the gods' idea of a fair trade. Her son would never get a quirk but he would be a genius nonetheless.

Inko shook her head as she refolded the letter and placed it back in the envelope. There was no use dwelling on what couldn't be changed.

Tucking the letter into her back pocket Inko moved towards the kitchen to start dinner. Izuku would be hungry soon, and hopefully the mundane task would help her calm enough to think of a way to break the news to him in as gentle a way as possible. Inko couldn't help but glance at her son's room where he was currently squirreled away watching cartoons, the door slightly ajar.

She faltered in her steps wondering if she should tell him now and get it over with. Should she tell him at all? Or would it be worse to wish for something that would never come?

There was suddenly a cheer followed by a childish giggle from the room.

No. It was best to get it over with.

However, listening to the sounds of her son's happiness and enjoyment of his programs, she decided the conversation could wait till after dinner.

Two hours later found Inko sitting in the living room on the couch with Izuku by her side. They were currently watching a game show both enjoyed. It was one of the few TV shows they didn't mind watching together.

Dinner had been eaten almost thirty minutes. Inko wasn't ashamed to admit she was being a bit of a coward. She should have started telling Izuku the truth as soon as they sat down after dinner but couldn't bring herself to wipe the happy look off his face. Her son was such a happy child. So sweet and innocent, ready to help others without a thought of himself. And so intelligent as well. A mother couldn't ask for a better son. Quirk or not.

Seeing the program was on a commercial break she swallowed before turning towards Izuku. It was now or never.

"Izuku, honey?"

Izuku turned towards his mother with big green eyes, the glow of the television reflecting off his face. There was a readymade smile on his face, his expression one of trust and anticipation. Inko felt a pain in her heart at the thought of having to wipe that look off his face.

"Mom?"

She sighed, reaching out to grab his hands in her own rubbing them soothingly. This caused a look of confusion to flash across Izuku's face before reverting back to a gentle smile.

' _Forgive me my son.'_

"Honey, mommy got a letter in the mail today."

Izuku simply blinked in confusion his face scrunching up adorably as he tried to make sense of what she was saying. "Oh? What was it mom? Was it from dad?"

Inko bit her lips. C'mon Inko. You can do this. Get it over with quick. To prolong things would only prolong his suffering.

"No, it wasn't from your father. Honey, do you remember how we went to the doctor a couple weeks ago? About your…about you getting a quirk? And he would run some tests and we would get the results in the mail?"

She saw his eyes widen as it seemed to click in his mind exactly what she was talking about. Along with the implications. Rather than an expression of anticipation or excitement, her son looked apprehensive.

She watched him bite his lips in a move so reminiscent of her, Inko could feel a lump forming in her throat as tears began to form behind her eyes. Her poor baby.

"What…what did it say?" asked Izuku fearfully with a hint of hope.

Inko swallowed heavily trying to clear her throat enough to speak. She felt her vision becoming obscured as she failed to hold back the tears.

Squeezing Izuku's hands, she delivered the words that would change his life.

"I'm sorry Izuku but…the results were negative. You won't be getting a quirk."

Blinking her eyes Inko let the tears fall. As her vision cleared she witnessed a sight she had never wanted to encounter. Her son's face seemed frozen in shock. It was if he were made of porcelain rather a living breathing human. The only thing that give him away was the look his eyes, where the hint hope and even fear had vanished into nothingness, and his hands had a death grip on her own.

Inko let out a sobbed as she released his hands and wrapped him up in a hug pulling him onto her lap.

For several moments it felt as if he'd gone limp before he began to squeeze her back just as fiercely drawing strength from his mother's arms.

"I'm so sorry Izuku! I'm so sorry!"

Mother and son spent the rest of the night drawing comfort from one another.

* * *

A non-descript car pulled up to a midsize well-to-do apartment complex. Dusk was just falling as passersby made their way both home and toward avenues of entertainment for the night.

The back door of the vehicle opened and out stepped a man in his late twenties with a mask around his mouth. He was dressed in a modest suit sans the jacket which he had tucked over his arm.

Closing the door he moved to the car's trunk, tapping it to signal the driver to open it up. He pulled out a backpack, two suitcases and a package wrapped in red paper. After adjusting his grip on his luggage he stepped onto the sidewalk giving a wave to the driver as he headed to the apartment complex.

There was a brief honk before the driver took off.

As approached the entrance, being mindful not to bump into anyone on the sidewalk, he stopped to look up at the building. Searching until his eyes found the unit he was looking for. The unit that contained two of the only people he cared about in this world.

Hisashi Midoriya smiled. _I'm finally home._

A swipe of his keycard, a few cheery greetings to his neighbors, and an elevator ride later, he was in front of the door to his family's unit.

Hisashi paused at the door wondering how he would be received. He had neglected to tell his wife he was coming home hoping he could surprise them. After all, it had only been a couple months ago they had come to visit him for Izuku's birthday. It had been great to spend time together, especially during such an important milestone in his son's life. Even if it hadn't gone as planned.

He clenched the handle of his suitcase as he recalled the last conversation he'd had with his wife. His boy was struggling with the reality that he would never receive a quirk.

Quirkless. A word that should have been benign in its use but these days had taken on a malicious tinge. More people than he would like saw it as a curse, even a few (the less intelligent) saw it as a disease that needed to cured, or the offending person as someone that needed to be taken care of.

Hisashi shook his head. Not his son. His son was worth more than his lack of quirk. And he would make sure Izuku and the world knew it. Izuku needed him here, and no amount of phone calls or video chats could make up for his physical presence.

He took a deep breath before pushing the air back out. Feeling his nerves calm Hiashi took out his keycard and swiped it to open the door.

It was time to set things to rights.

Opening the door as quietly as he could, Hisashi strained his ears to pick where his family was in their home. He could hear the slight clink of utensils which indicated they were in the dining room having dinner. Perfect.

Slowing creeping inside he shut and locked the door as quietly as possible. Setting his luggage to the side of the entryway Hisashi proceeded to take off his shoes and slip on his slippers.

As he approached the dining room he could hear Inko asking Izuku about his day at the nursery.

Standing at the threshold of the dining room Hisashi grinned at the sight of Izuku excitedly telling Inko about an arts and crafts project they did in which he made a picture of All Might out of toothpicks.

"Can't wait to see it champ!"

There was a clatter as Inko dropped her chopsticks, startled by the unexpected voice. However, just before the panic could fully set in she looked where the voice had come from to see her husband standing in the doorway. She clutched her chest in relief before her eyes suddenly widened in shock.

"Hiashi!?"

"Dad!" yelled Izuku, dropping his chopsticks to hop out of his seat and run into his father's arms.

Hisashi picked him up and twirled him around in a circle. "Ah! There's my big boy. You miss your papa?"

Izuku beamed, all wide smile, bright eyes and freckles. Looking even more like his mother every day. Despite what could be considered a plain face, Hiashi was positive his son's cheery attitude would win over many a girl once he got older.

"Of course, Dad! Why are you here? I mean not that I don't want you here. I really do…it's just we just saw you! Unless you've been fired from your job? Oh, no, what are we gonna do? I remember one of my classmates' dad lost his job, then he couldn't come to the nursery anymore. Will I not be able to go anymore? Cause that would be…."

Hisashi had the resist the urge to laugh at his son's verbal tic. Instead he looked over Izuku's shoulder at Inko who looked just as amused. He winked at her before turning his attention back to his son.

"Hey," he said firmly to cut through Izuku's chatter.

The boy's mouth shut with an audible click as he gave Hiashi his full attention.

"Everything's fine. I still have my job, it's just I decided I missed you all so much I'd take some time off to visit. So, what do you say? Up to spend some more time with your old man?"

Izuku raised his arms above his head with a cheer. "Yes! I can't wait to show you my room. Mom decorated it after All Might. We can go to the beach, watch a movie, and get ice cream. Oh! I can take you to the arcade! And then we can…"

Hisashi couldn't help but grin at the little sprite's attitude. It was infectious.

"Izuku," admonished Inko. "There will plenty of time to do all these things. Right now it's time to eat dinner and I'm sure your father's quite hungry from his journey. When you're both finished then you can catch up. Okay?"

Ears turning red with embarrassment Izuku apologized before squirming out of Hisashi's arms back to his seat, picking up his chopsticks to continue eating with gusto. No doubt thinking the sooner he finished, the sooner he could continue with his ramblings.

Chuckling Hisashi moved forward to embrace Inko and give her a chaste kiss on the lips. Out the corner of his eyes he could see Izuku make a face at the action making him grin. He washed his hands before joining his family at the table where they ate while discussing everything and nothing in a jovial atmosphere.

* * *

" _ **It's fine now! Why? BECAUSE I AM HERE!"**_

Izuku watched in awe as his favorite hero All Might rescued dozens of people from a hopeless situation with a smile on his face and laughter on his lips. Despite having watched this video thousands of times, Izuku couldn't help but want to see again and again what seemed to him to be the greatest example of true heroism. The kind of hero that everyone should aspire to be.

Izuku felt his throat tighten at the thought.

Except him. As someone quirkless he couldn't really aspire to be a hero now could he? Such a dream was considered foolish. And Izuku was no fool. He had to be realistic now, he thought as his lip quivered. He could feel the sting of his tears behind his eyes as he tried in vain to hold them back.

Why? Why couldn't he have a quirk? It wasn't fair! It wasn't fair at all!

He viciously swiped at the tears running down his face. Glad that he was alone in his room and not at the nursery where they would ridicule him for his tears. He was already quirkless, the last thing he needed was to be labelled a crybaby too.

He gripped the edge of his desk as he leaned forward in the computer chair forcing himself to look at the video. He wasn't a crybaby. He wasn't weak. He could face the truth.

Faintly he heard the sound of his bedroom door opening. Glancing back he saw it was his father with a solemn look on his face. Izuku felt fresh tears begin to fall.

How disappointed must his father be that he didn't have quirk? Probably as much as mom was. She had apologized so many times over the last few weeks, seeming to blame herself when really she should blame him. He was the one without a quirk after all, not her.

Still, Izuku couldn't help but hope. No matter what his desire wouldn't leave him. He wanted to be a hero so desperately. And perhaps that's why before he could even think about it the words left his lips.

"Dad?" He turned away from him, unable to look as he asked for an answer he both craved for and rejected. "All Might….he saves everyone with a smile, no matter what trouble they're in… He's such a cool hero…" Finally Izuku turned to face his father, unable to muster up a tough face. It was all or nothing. "Can I…be a hero, too?"

There was a beat as the two simply stared at one another before Hiashi moved. With measured steps he approached Izuku until he was standing right in front of him then knelt down to his eye level. Reaching out he grasped his shoulders in a tight grip and looked him square in the eye before breaking into a smile.

"My son, of course you can be a hero."

Then he pulled Izuku into a hug.

Young Midoriya felt as if his heart would burst from hearing his father's words. He…he believed in him. He believed he could be a hero! Izuku let his tears flow freely now as he hugged his father back as with fervor.

After a few minutes his father pulled back with a peculiar look on his face. Yet it was an expression he'd seen on his father's face many times before. Usually when he was about tell Izuku something important. Izuku straightened up and listened intently to what his father had to say.

"Izuku. Let me give you some advice, son. Never forget what you are, for the rest of the world will not. Wear it like armor and it can never be used to hurt you," Hiashi said, as his eyes bored into Izuku's.

"I won't lie to you son, the path you've chosen is long, dangerous and will be hard to accomplish. Probably the hardest thing you will ever do in your life. But if you're serious about becoming a hero then there are three things you need. Will, determination and vision. If you have those three things, then anything, _anything_ is possible."

Izuku nodded. He didn't understand his father's words at first. Not truly. And he wouldn't for quite some time. But he would always remember this conversation and how it was the first step in him becoming a hero.


End file.
